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Microsoft Robots to Watch Kids

Posted by samzenpus on from the if-I-sleep-the-robot-will-get-me dept.

Archangel Michael writes "Microsoft announced today that is testing a new toy / robot to watch over kids. My question is, if the toy BSOD does it take the kid with it? Now we are letting inanimate objects raise our kids! When will it end?"

22 of 544 comments (clear)

  1. Sounds like Awesomo! by iolaus · · Score: 5, Funny

    Awesomo loves you!

    --
    I find laziness to be an excellent motivator.
    1. Re:Sounds like Awesomo! by SilentChris · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Now we are letting inanimate objects raise our kids!

      Forget Awesomo. What about the glowing box in the living room? "Raising Children Since the 50's" (tm)

  2. perspective please by selderrr · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Now we are letting inanimate objects raise our kids!

    You mean "as opposed to the warm and healthy TV-education kids have been raised by in the past 15 years" ? At least this robot might create the opportunity to go play outside.

    Stop seeing everything so negative

    --
    When will I end this grieving ? When will my future begin ?
    1. Re:perspective please by Richie1984 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      At least this robot might create the opportunity to go play outside.

      I feel the more important point is that no amount of television or 'nanny robots' can protect a child, and also help along its development, as well as genuine parental interaction, or general human interaction.

      --
      I'm not stressed. I'm just terribly, terribly alert.
    2. Re:perspective please by SenFo · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "You mean "as opposed to the warm and healthy TV-education kids have been raised by in the past 15 years" ? At least this robot might create the opportunity to go play outside.

      Stop seeing everything so negative"

      TV shows did not raise me. My mother did. TV shows were simply a form of entertainment and in no way a replacement for time spent with a human.

      Call it being "negative" if you want, but I think your naive. Besides, a Microsoft robot? Come on!

      --
      My lame blog.
    3. Re:perspective please by KtHM · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It's better to actually be a parent.

      Come on, don't have kids unless you're gonna take care of them.

    4. Re:perspective please by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      But your parent is an anonymous coward!

  3. The horror! by Richie1984 · · Score: 5, Funny

    The teddy bear sitting in the corner of the child's room might look normal, until his head starts following the kid around using a face recognition program

    Does anyone else think that this could be the scariest thing ever? Especially if they make a clown version?

    --
    I'm not stressed. I'm just terribly, terribly alert.
    1. Re:The horror! by C0d1ngM0nk3y · · Score: 5, Funny

      Hehe....

      'Can't sleep, clown will eat me....!'

      --
      Coding Monkey.org - Spanging the heavy spade of truth into t
    2. Re:The horror! by netman12 · · Score: 5, Funny
      perhaps also allowing a parent talk to the child through a special phone, or monitor the child via a camera and wireless Internet connection.

      And at 2am the child wakes up screaming, after someone hacked into the robot and played a recording of Chucky?

    3. Re:The horror! by Ed+Avis · · Score: 5, Funny

      In Soviet Russia, children play with toys!

      --
      -- Ed Avis ed@membled.com
  4. Linux by BladeMelbourne · · Score: 5, Funny

    I give it two months before someone can boot Linux on it, and in 6 months they could do it without needing to solder...

  5. BSOD by nmg196 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why are there always the inevitable jokes about BSODs? They're from like, Windows 95 or 98 which is now at least 7 years old. I've NEVER seen 2000 or XP produce a blue screen of death EVER - and use it all day every day in many different capacities as a software developer.

    I know it's physically capable of a BSOD, but really, has anyone ever seen XP or 2000 SP3 actually BSOD on a regular basis. My experience is that XP itself is incredibly stable. Infinitely more so than 95 or 98.

    1. Re:BSOD by millwall · · Score: 5, Funny

      "My experience is that XP itself is incredibly stable.

      Congratulations on getting a post that included this sentence to be modded "Informative" :-)

    2. Re:BSOD by fizze · · Score: 5, Informative

      Windows-XP has a "feature" (???) with which it is possible to manually crash a system by simply holding the right CTRL key and pressing the "Scroll Lock" key twice. This feature can be turned on by the following steps:

      1. Start regedit. (If you are unfamiliar with regedit, please refer to this FAQ)
      2. Navigate to:
      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\S ervic es\i8042prt\Parameters
      3. Create a new DWORD value and name it CrashOnCtrlScroll
      4. Right-click on this newly created value and click on Modify
      5. Enter 1 in the Value data field and click on OK.
      6. Close regedit and reboot your system.
      7. Now you can blue screen (crash) your system by holding the right CTRL key and pressing "Scroll Lock" twice.

      Note:

      Your system may reboot or show a blue screen whenever this crash is initiated. If your system reboots after initiating the crash, and you want to see the blue screen, follow these steps:

      1. Go to Control Panel > System
      2. Click on the Advanced tab
      3. Under Startup and Recovery, click the Settings button.
      4. Under System failure, uncheck the option Automatically restart.

      Happy crashing...

      cudos to http://www.tweakxp.com/article140073.aspx

      --
      Powerful is he who overpowers his temptations.
  6. k, gotta be useful here by booyah · · Score: 5, Insightful

    as a father of an amazingly cute 6 month old little girl, I have to say.

    "If you dont want to watch your kids, you shouldnt have had them". there its said, its out, and thats it.

    Personally the highlight of my day is coming home and spending the 5 or so hours with my wife and daughter. I spend the entire time playing with the little girl, its amazing what they do when you watch them, you can see their little outlooks forming, I really do think I have a good idea what she will be like in 3-4 years, as well as in 10-20 years. I really cant wait, but am enjoying every minute I have.

    Some may say that robots could make life easier when you want to do little things like cook dinner, or take a shower, stick the kid in a bouncy seat, or exersaucer and bring em with you. My daughter loves to watch me cook (from a safe splatter free distance).

    my $.02

    --
    #include sig.h
  7. Clippy by millwall · · Score: 5, Funny
    Robot with Clippy's voice:

    "Hi kid! It looks like you are peeing, do you want me to help?"
  8. And what about... by NickFitz · · Score: 5, Interesting
    The idea is to create a virtual being that can... let the plumber into the house while its owner enjoys a pleasant afternoon in the sun.

    Now, am I really going to trust a Microsoft security system to ascertain that it really is the plumber, rather than some smackhead from down the street?

    --
    Using HTML in email is like putting sound effects on your phone calls. Just say <strong>no</strong>.
  9. Kids nowadays... by RayTardo · · Score: 5, Funny
    Now we are letting inanimate objects raise our kids!

    You've obviously never hired a teenage babysitter...
  10. Gate's Laws of Robotics by windowpain · · Score: 5, Funny

    1) A robot may not use a non-Microsoft product or through inaction, allow a human being to use a non-Microsoft product.

    2) A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

    3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

    --
    Insert witty sig here.
    1. Re:Gate's Laws of Robotics by AndroidCat · · Score: 5, Funny
      4. Classified.

      (Remember that Robocop boots in DOS.)

      --
      One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
  11. In other news by Nine+Tenths+of+The+W · · Score: 5, Funny

    Michael Jackson announces a sudden decision to become a cyborg.

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